HerStory: Personal perspectives on life right now from Hank Phillippi Ryan

Friday

Aug 28, 2009 at 12:01 AMAug 28, 2009 at 7:17 AM

Hank Phillippi Ryan, Investigative reporter for WHDH-TV and mystery author, is profiled in this week's Herstory.

Staff reports

PROUDEST ACCOMPLISHMENT

Juggling. Nope, not that kind of juggling. For more than 30 years, I’ve had a fulfilling and engaging career as a TV reporter. I’ve helped change laws and change lives, and I still love my work. In my 50s, I began an additional (and fulfilling and engaging) career as a mystery author. I’m happily married, with a great husband and terrific step-children and grandchildren. So, you see. Juggling.

PERFECT DAY

My perfect day? No alarm clock. We wake up to sunshine, and delicious coffee. Read all the newspapers. It’s the weekend, so my TV stories for the next week are all under way. I work on my book for a few hours and somehow the words flow. My husband and I take an evening stroll and end up at our local movie theater, see a movie and wind up at a local restaurant for dinner. We bring home ice cream and watch “The Wire” on TV.

LOOKING FORWARD

I always think my next great TV story is just around the corner, so I can’t wait to see what that’ll be. I’m working on some new book ideas and I can’t wait to see how those will turn out. Our 12th wedding anniversary is in late September. Very lovely.

PASS IT ON

I was on the ferry to Nantucket a year or so ago. It was a blustery day, and I was sitting inside. I saw a white moth, fluttering wildly against the closed window, trying to get out. “Moth, moth,” I said to it. (Not out loud.) “You’re on the ferry to Nantucket. You can freak out along the way, or you can relax and enjoy the ride. But you’ll still arrive at the same place and the same time.”

I realized I might have been talking to myself. So relax and enjoy the ride.

Nominate someone you know for HerStory. Every woman has a story – Her story. Whether we volunteer our time, invest in raising our children, build a business, write a poem, paint a portrait or a community fence, there’s some knowledge and laughter to share in each of us. Nominate someone you know by sending an e-mail to womynzone@ledger.com.